Kristin and Matt

          Congratulations to Kristin and Matt on their engagement!

A Few Recent Images

          Below are a few recent images from my Iron Range project that did not make it into my upcoming exhibition from January 23 - February 27. If you are interested in seeing more, please come to the gallery opening tomorrow, January 23, from 6:00PM to 7:30PM. View the flyer below for more information. Enjoy!

** Click on image to view larger 

       Thanks goes out to those who have made this project such a joy to work on.

WHEN: Thursday, January 23, 2014 from 6:00PM to 7:30PM

WHERE: The Art Institutes International Minnesota located at 15 S 9th St, Minneapolis, MN 55402

          

          Brandon Lepasti is a fiscal year 2013 recipient of an Artist Initiative grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

Artist Initiative Grant Project Exhibition

Click on flyer to view larger

iSpy With My Little iPhone - 1

An image made entirely with my iPhone.

Radisson Blu Mall of America. Bloomington, Minnesota.

Ray Frigard: Inventor, Designer, Sculptor, Author, and Educator

       There are times when I will meet a person and know immediately that SOME DAY I will photograph them. Ray Frigard was one of those guys. It was not until four or five months after meeting him at the Polaris headquarters in Medina, where he works as a clay modeler, that I finally followed through with it though. I spent quite some time at his home in Mound. He shared with me some of his many creations ranging from various sculptures, toy inventions, and a book he wrote on creative problem solving called: Arthink. I had first entered his home with the idea that I would photograph him in his studio, which is where all the magic happens. However, due to the size of the space and the amount of stuff in it, I found it difficult to make a visually pleasing composition. As a solution, I decided to simplify things  by incorporating Ray into one of his abstract sculptures, which I felt better portrayed his artistic style anyway. Below is the final image that I decided to edit, as well as a small contact sheet of other angles I shot from during our shoot. I introduce to you, Ray Frigard: inventor, designer, sculptor, author, and educator. Enjoy!

Ray Frigard. Mound, Minnesota.

Contact Sheet of Unedited Images

SCULPTURE INFO

Title: Adagio

Materials: Copper, brass and wood

Date: June of 2005

Concept: The form was originally developed by messing around with a 12 gage wire. Ray generally likes to portray figures in abstract form with various materials. Although Ray enjoys the open interpretation of his artwork, he feels that this sculpture suggests the slow musical movement of a dancer. Hence the title of this piece: Adagio. 

ARTIST BACKGROUND

        Ray Frigard has an extensive creative background in the following areas: invention, design, sculpting, writing, and education. He has patents on original inventions and designs for rollerblades, cameras, boats, toys, and games. As an industrial sculptor, he has worked in the design studios of Ford, Chrysler, BMW, and Tonka Toys. Currently, Ray works at Polaris Industries where he sculpts scale and full size models in clay. He is an artist-in-residence at Our Savior Lutheran School, where he teaches art and creative problem solving K-8. He also gives workshops on creative problem solving to educators and presents at national conferences. Ray has won multiple awards in juried and non-juried shows throughout his 40 years of experience in sculpting in clay, wood, metal, plaster, bronze, and ceramics. 

        Thank you, Ray, for reaching out to me and giving me a highly informational and inspiring tour of the Polaris headquarters. Also, thank you for having me over and sitting for a portrait session. I greatly appreciate your time and efforts!

A Beautiful Calm

A view from a side road in Farmington, Minnesota. 

TWSnow - Spot Check

        I had my wisdom tooth taken out today. What an odd experience it is to wake up from anesthesia for the first time! I'm sucking on a bloody cotton swab now. Mmm...

        When I got home, I opened my new Transworld Snowboarding magazine and was pleasantly surprised to see my photo ran for a Powder Ridge "Spot Check". Congratulations to Yusaku Horii for being published in a photo of a small Minnesota ski resort after flying all the way from his home base - Japan. He is such an entertaining rider to watch and has one of the best looking method grabs I have ever seen. Thanks goes to Michael Weiner and the people at Powder Ridge for making this photo shoot come alive. Finally, thanks to Chris Wellhausen, Photo Editor of Transworld Snowboarding, for giving me the opportunity to shoot this assignment. I appreciate all of your help!

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 Transworld Snowboarding | Volume 26 - March - 2013 | Pg. 116

Yusaku Horii. Gap Method to Backside Lipslide. Powder Ridge. Kimball, Minnesota.